3 ms·
No mass is lost in this reaction. The mass of the atoms remains the same. The energy that is released is due to the difference in bond energies. To balance the
by MarcScott 12y ago
No mass is lost in this reaction. The mass of the atoms remains the same. The energy that is released is due to the difference in bond energies. To balance the equation you would need to add a Q to the other side, corresponding to the bond energies.
- sp332 12y agoThe energy Q is in the molecules. It is released during the chemical reaction.
- MarcScott 12y agoThe molecules consist of Hydrogen and Oxygen that have equal atomic masses, either side of the equation, due to the identical numbers of protons, neutrons and electrons. Any mass gained or lost will be due to changes in bond energies, and the corresponding emission or absorption of photons that change the energy states of the electrons in the bonds.
- dietrichepp 12y agoPutting a Q on the left hand side would be an error. Q indicates that the energy is not bound in the molecular configurations. If you measure the mass of a quantity of water accurately enough, the mass will be lower than the mass of the equivalent amount of hydrogen and oxygen gas. The difference would be so small that our most sensitive instruments would not be able to detect it. Likewise, in a nuclear reaction, the only thing changing is the nuclear binding energies of the protons and neutrons. However, since the energy involved is many orders of magnitude higher, our instruments are sensitive enough to detect the difference in mass.